Story highlights
An anti-terrorism court released PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan on Monday, however, the same court sent five party leaders to jail on remand after they were whisked away from Parliament the other day.
“September 10, 2024, will be considered a ‘black day’ for Pakistan’s democracy and none of us will ever forget it,” Gohar told reporters after his release in Islamabad.
He was among half a dozen party lawmakers who were dragged from the Parliament House on Monday night by the Islamabad Police following the party rally in the federal capital’s Sangjani.
Imran Khan’s party lawmakers demanded the former prime minister’s release in a rally attended by hundreds of party supporters. They slammed the incumbent government for the PTI chief’s incarceration and reiterated that their “mandate was stolen” on February 8.
But the federal capital’s administration was not satisfied with the rally as it issued notifications after the PTI did not end the public gathering event at 7pm—a time decided by both sides. Clashes were also reported between the police and supporters of PTI as the former warned the latter against adhering to the designated route.
The inspector general of police had promised action after the rally, which ended three hours later than the timeline set by the district administration.
An anti-terrorism court in Islamabad PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan discharged him from cases registered at the Sangjani Police Station. Moreover, the court approved an eight-day physical remand for Sher Afzal Marwat, Zain Qureshi, and Aamir Dogar.
Cases have been registered against PTI leaders at three police stations, encompassing charges of interfering with government operations, vandalism, and violations of Section 144 – which bans the gathering of more than five people – of the CrPC.
The ATC sent Shoaib Shaheen to jail on judicial remand in a case registered at the Noon Police Station.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur re-established contact with his party leaders on Tuesday after being unreachable for eight hours. He lost contact at 7pm Monday evening.
Provincial Minister Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif stated that the chief minister’s phone was off, making it impossible to contact him. Sources said that Gandapur travelled from Islamabad to Peshawar late at night, and it was reported that he had fallen ill.
Former prime minister Imran Khan said that he had told his party members to end all communication with the establishment “immediately”, following Gandapur’s alleged abduction.
Khan alleged that the establishment had tricked him on multiple occasions, including the postponement of a planned rally on August 22 and the subsequent cancellation of a rally on September 8.
He claimed the establishment had requested the postponement of the August 22 rally for the sake of the country and had even provided a no objection certificate for the Sunday rally, only to back out at the last minute.
National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said that there would be no compromise on the dignity of Parliament during a meeting with leaders and members of parliamentary parties to address the matter of recent arrests from the premises of Parliament.
The leaders condemned the events of Monday night and urged the speaker to take action on the issue.
Sadiq reaffirmed his commitment to resolving the issue collaboratively and agreed on the need to establish a comprehensive protocol for handling such incidents in the future.
The NA speaker called for an “immediate and thorough investigation” into the arrests.
He summoned the IGP of Islamabad to his office to inquire about the incident and instructed him to ensure that the arrested members were produced in the Parliament in accordance with legal procedures.
Meanwhile, the NA speaker ordered the collection of video footage from all entry points of the Parliament House and assured members that legal action would be taken based on the evidence gathered.
At a press conference in Peshawar, the PTI leaders announced the party’s decision to protest on Friday against the “unlawful” arrest of its leaders.
Salman Akram Raja said that legislations could not be made when lawmakers are arrested. He warned that it would further incite people, saying that there “is a lava” inside people against the crackdown on PTI.
Emotionally charged PTI’s Ali Muhammad Khan slammed the government over the arrests of his fellow party leaders.
“Today, I am making a case on democracy,” he said. “Last night, what happened to democracy and to this Parliament? We are not in Israel, we are in Pakistan.”
He criticised the “people in masks” who whisked the PTI leaders away from the Parliament House.
“While what happened on 9 May was wrong, what happened last night was 9 May for Pakistan’s democracy,” Khan said.
“This date (September 9) will be remembered in Pakistan’s history. It is filled with Liaquat Ali Khan, Bhutto’s execution, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto’s blood and gunshots at Imran Khan’s body.
“Last night, not from India, Israel or America but [people] from the institutions of my own country [made the arrests]. Who were […] those veiled people who entered [the Parliament] and took our people away?”
“This is an attack on democracy and on Pakistan’s Constitution,” Khan said.
